Vegan Diet Reduces Heart Disease

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New Study Shows Vegan Diet Reduces Heart Disease Risk in People with

Type 2 Diabetes

Source: http://www.pcrm.org/news/release081003.html

 

Vegan Diet Scores Dramatically Higher in Alternate Healthy Eating

Index than Diet Based on ADA Guidelines

 

WASHINGTON—A new report in October's Journal of the American Dietetic

Association shows that a low-fat vegan diet has a nutrient profile and

diet quality associated with a greater reduction in heart disease risk

in people with type 2 diabetes than a diet based on the American

Diabetes Association (ADA) guidelines.

 

" Two out of three people with diabetes die of heart disease or stroke,

so it is hugely significant to find that a low-fat vegan diet can

treat diabetes and dramatically reduce heart disease risk, " says lead

author Gabrielle M. Turner-McGrievy, M.S., R.D., a doctoral candidate

in nutrition at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a

nutrition scientist with the Physicians Committee for Responsible

Medicine. " These findings should encourage anyone with diabetes to

talk to their physician about adopting a vegan diet to manage their

disease and reduce the risk of a heart attack. "

 

In the 22-week study, 99 people with type 2 diabetes were randomly

assigned to follow either a low-fat, low-glycemic vegan diet or a diet

based on ADA recommendations. In the study—which Turner-McGrievy

co-authored with several others including Neal D. Barnard, M.D., and

Joshua Cohen, M.D.— the vegan diet dramatically cut consumption of

cholesterol, fat, and saturated fat, and increased healthful fiber,

beta-carotene, and vitamins K and C intake, compared with the diet

based on ADA guidelines. Almost half of the participants in the vegan

group reduced, if not eliminated, their medication, compared with only

26 percent of participants in the ADA group.

 

The study also measured the nutrient profile, diet quality, and

chronic disease risk of the two diets by using the Alternate Healthy

Eating Index (AHEI) score. AHEI is a system based on a nine-component

dietary index used to rate foods and macronutrients related to chronic

disease. Food categories included vegetables, fruits, nuts and soy

protein, ratio of white to red meat, cereal fiber, trans fat, and

ratio of polyunsaturated to saturated fatty acids.

 

The study found that the vegan group had great improvement in every

AHEI category, including significant increases in intakes of

vegetable, fruit, nut and soy protein, and cereal fiber, and a

decrease in trans fat intake. The ADA group saw no improvement in AHEI

score. While participants in both groups improved, the vegan group

experienced significantly greater reductions in A1c (a measure of

blood sugar levels over a prolonged period), weight, body mass index,

waist circumference, and LDL ( " bad " ) cholesterol, excluding

participants who changed or reduced their medication.

 

The vegan diet consisted of grains, fruits, vegetables, and legumes.

Participants in this group avoided animal products and fatty foods and

favored low-glycemic-index foods, such as sweet potatoes and rye and

pumpernickel bread. There were no restrictions on calories or portion

sizes. ADA guidelines provided recommendations on the intake of

calories, carbohydrate, and saturated fat grams based on each

participant's body weight, lipid profile, and current food and eating

habits.

 

Founded in 1985, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine

(PCRM) is a nonprofit organization that promotes preventive medicine,

conducts clinical research, and encourages higher standards for ethics

and effectiveness in research.